


Somebody Else Might Take My Place

by lexnbish



Category: Camp Camp (Web Series)
Genre: Angst, Canon-Typical Violence, Crying, Cultists, David Acting as Max's Parental Figure | Dadvid (Camp Camp), David Adopts Max (Camp Camp), Fluff, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, Injury, Mild Blood, Nightmares, Sick Fic, Swearing, There's a couple oc's but like just foster siblings and parents and what not, Violence, Vomiting, Wholesome, cult max, dadvid
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-07-15
Updated: 2020-08-31
Packaged: 2021-03-05 04:00:40
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 8
Words: 11,070
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25278124
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lexnbish/pseuds/lexnbish
Summary: Max tries to show the true colors of a new kid at Camp Campbell who looks exactly like him for the fear of him taking his place as Daniel did with David. Can Max expose the cultist? (Art included and see notes for some plot credit)
Relationships: David & Max (Camp Camp), Max & A Cult Version Of Him, Max & Science Camp Neil & Nikki (Camp Camp)
Comments: 70
Kudos: 74





	1. Keep on dreaming, Don't stop giving, Fight those demons

**Author's Note:**

> (Please put plot suggestions in the comments and critiques ty)  
> So I saw a fic called 'Camp Cannibal' by TheGoddessOfRegret and for the record, I haven't read it. I got the idea for this when I read the summary of the fic and decided to not read it in case I subconsciously put similar ideas from that fic into this fic. So I'm giving loose credit to them for the idea of a Max clone coming to camp. ALSO THIS IS A SERIES!! So daniel and dadvid and all that will be there in later chapters!!!! enjoy!!

“New kid’s here.”

The campers turned around with confused looks plastered on their faces.

“Seriously?” Nikki said looking towards the bus in disgust, “This just made appropriate greetings camp even wors- oh I see why we're doing this now.” David pinched the bridge of his nose and sighed momentarily before his trademark superficial smile plastered across his face again.

“Kids, please just be nice okay?” A mumbled ‘fine’ was heard from the crowd. The campers all stared at the bus door waiting for the new kid that was inevitably going to ruin Camp Campbell’s delicate ecosystem to appear.

Soon after, a small boy emerged.

“Hello everybody!”

_‘Wait…’_

Max’s jaw dropped. 

_‘No fucking way.’_

The boy looked exactly like him.

He had curly black hair, the same caramel skin, and identical facial features but, his eyes were strangely dilated and a disturbing icy blue. He also wore a white hoodie and black jeans which differed from Max’s usual blue aesthetic but other than that, he might as well’ve been looking in a mirror. Well, except for the fact that this kid had a wide grin plastered on his face. Max could only wonder if he was an eccedentesiast.

_‘Nobody_ _can be_ ** _that_** _happy to be at Camp Campbell.’_ He thought to himself for a moment. 

“Well hello, there kiddo! My name is David!” The camp counselor announced excitedly, not seeming to see anything off about the new camper, “Welcome to Camp Campbell! What’s your name?” 

The carbon-copy of Max looked at David with unblinking eyes. “My name is Mac! It’s a pleasure to meet you!”

The kids gave him a fake half-smile while introducing themselves while internally plotting ways to run him out as they did with Jermy. 

-

David started leading the campers towards the activities field for a forest walk after giving Mac a quick tour of Camp Campbell.

The group went through the rules of nature walks for the umpteenth time, probably for the new kid’s sake, and then started their trek through the Sleep Peak forest.

Although the campers weren’t very impressed by Mac showing up out of the blue and messing up the camp’s dynamic, they still had some questions for the boy. Preston asked first.

“So… new kid, what’s your name short for?” Mac smiled eerily at the question while balancing along a fallen log effortlessly.

“It’s short for Macbeth.” He said. Preston audibly gasped but tried to keep his excitement internal.

“Well,” the theatre kid started, “Better watch your tents guys because he might stab you in your sleep.” Mac gave a humourless laugh in response to the Shakespeare reference while the other campers shot judging and confused looks towards Preston. He muttered something along the lines of ‘uneducated roaches’ and angrily speed walked his way to the front of the group.

The next question came from Space Kid.

“Hey, Mac? Do you like space?”

The boy turned his head in a jarring fashion. “Yes, actually.” He said with his unreadable grin not faltering. Space Kid looked ecstatic and started mumbling incoherently about planets and stars. Mac nodded along to what the fishbowl headed boy was rambling about.

Max glared toward the new kid. “Seriously,” He exclaimed to his friends, “How does nobody notice that Mac is just another weird cultist?”

Neil sighed. “Max, we know he’s probably a cultist and looks EXACTLY like you but, doppelgangers exist too.” Nikki hummed in agreement.

“Neil, I know you’re a genius and what not but you seriously need to wake up and smell the kool-aid man.” Max said while shooting a couple more homicidal looks towards the imposter.

The boy felt a hand fall on his shoulder. He jumped at the sudden contact and felt a chill run down his spine which wasn’t normal for him. “You must be Max!” He recognised the voice at once. It was his own voice but more upbeat and intoxicatingly joyous. Max’s eyes met the eerie glare of his doppelganger while he spun around to confront Mac face to face but the clone kept talking. “I hope we can be _very_ good friends! I’ve heard _so_ many great things about you from _David_.”

Max’s shoulders tensed at the comment about David. He knew it wasn’t true.

_‘What is he trying to get at here…’_

He thought for a minute about how he’d go about confronting the doppelganger and decided on being as straightforward as he could.

“Look,” Max started with a deadpan expression, “I don’t know what your deal is but I know you aren’t Mr. Perfect. People will see you’re a bad person sooner or later. I’m on to you, you cultist fuck.” Mac laughed somewhat arrogantly in response.

“Oh Max. Look like the innocent flower but be the serpent under’t.” 

Max stood there for a moment trying to understand what the kid meant. 

_‘So does that mean it’s a facade_ ? _Am I completely right or is this some double meaning Shakespeare shit. Fucking hate English comprehension.’_ The boy thought.

He looked into his copy’s eyes to search for any emotion this kid was portraying to find any malicious intent. All he got from the observation was that the new kid had strange looking eyes. Max noticed his pupils were expanded and augmented regardless of the sun shining directly into them and his irises seemed misty and faded. But, that wasn’t the weird part. 

Mac’s eyes were vacant.

Like no one was really there.

After a moment, he gave in to the boy’s metaphoric riddles and sighed.

“Okay motherfucker.” He decided on replying with since not knowing what to say was a once in a decade thing for the camper.

“Hey you two!” the annoyingly overjoyed voice of David sounded from the front of the group, “Don’t fall too far behind! We don’t want another camper to go missing in the woods like last year!” Max looked around and saw that they were reasonably far behind the group and started to inch back towards the hoard of campers away from the freak-show he was talking to. But, before he could move, he heard Mac clear his throat for his attention. 

“Preston was right you know.”

_‘...What?’_

Max remembered what the theatre kid said and his face dropped and his eyes grew wider than Nikki’s mom’s legs on parents day. He stood frozen like a deer in headlights.

The small boy stared at Max a couple of seconds longer with a grin devoid of warmth and walked back to the crowd of campers.

_‘Fuck.’_

https://64.media.tumblr.com/e72d315423200b76777bb73c2f916e42/1fe1d0b67c504b23-27/s2048x3072/5307e92628bdf128394e6df134d0622339fd48bd.png


	2. Sell your Soul, Not Your Whole Self

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Max goes to the one place he feels safe to try to guilt-trip David to get Mac thrown out. But, it starts raining. Hard.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> im gonna try to have art in each chapter btw. also if you couldn't tell the chapters are lyrics from 'Afraid' by The Neibourghood since the fic is loosely based off that song :)

Max couldn’t sleep.

_‘Preston was right you know.’_

The sentence haunted his thoughts, circling his mind like a vulture preying on whatever he was trying to distract himself with. He would try to think of something else like a scheme for tomorrow or make fake scenarios in his head but his thoughts would always circle back to the phrase.

_‘Preston was right you know.’_

There was only one place that he was guaranteed to be safe.

“Fuck it.” Max said, sighing. He sat up in the shitty camp cot and swung his legs over the side of it, gazing shortly at the crapping alarm clock that was 8 minutes too early. It read 2:45 am. “Would David even be awake right now?” He mumbled to himself before jumping to the floor of his tent and pulling his cobalt hoodie over his head.

Max stepped outside and welcomed the surprisingly chilly breeze. It wasn’t usually cold during summer, especially summers at Camp Campbell, so he enjoyed it while it lasted. He liked bitter winter climates since you can just put a jacket on and you’re fine but when it’s hot it's not like you can rip your skin off or something.

But, then it started to rain. Hard.

Max pulled his hood over his black curls and started booking it towards the cabin.

After a short while of scampering through the heavy rainfall like a frightened squirrel, the counselors cabin came into view. Max didn’t usually like asking David for help but he figured that the camp counselor was the one person he needed to convince to get Mac kicked out. So, he put on an Oscar worthy performance, playing the part of a scared little kid. 

Tearing up wasn’t difficult. The wind was already making his eyes water so he ended up just staring into the storm and letting the downpour strike his eyes until they burned red. 

_‘Now… the hard part.’_

He approached the door and knocked.

-

David awoke to a knock on his door. It wasn’t out of the ordinary to have the campers coming to the counselors cabin late at night and it definitely wasn’t out of the ordinary tonight since there was a storm out and kids are scared of thunder and what not. He sat up slowly, rubbing his eyes, and opened the door to-

_‘Wait. This might be out of the ordinary.’_ He thought when coming face to face with the kid standing in front of him.

“Max?” David said, crouching down to the small boy’s height. “What’s wrong?”

Max scuffed his shoes against the floor and looked the counselor in the eye. It was then that David noticed the boy’s sclera was bloodshot and his eyes were glistening with tears.

“David…” the camper started, shoving his hands into his rain-soaked hoodie pouch, “I’m scared.” 

The counselor didn’t try to hide his shock at Max being upfront with his emotions for once and _nearly_ audibly gasped. David sighed and composed himself before giving the boy a weak smile and signaling for him to enter the cabin.

Max walked into the room. He’d been in the place many times before, usually stealing stuff, but at night, it seemed completely different. Fairy lights hung above David and Gwen’s beds loosely, creating a soft glow in the dark room. More hanging lights decorated the perimeter of a cork board which was filled with polaroid pictures from previous years and a paper which read ‘Max has smiled 1.5 times this week’ which brought a soft smirk to his face. 

“Should I change it to 2 times now?” David said with a light chuckle. Max flipped him off.

“Okay, okay just follow me.” The camp counselor gestured towards the empty bed and sat down on the side. The small boy plopped himself down next to him and swung his legs back and forth to portray himself as more childish while sniffling and wiping his face with his sleeve for effect.

“Max… Can you tell me why you’re scared?” David started, “I thought you said you weren’t scared of anything.”

Max glared at the floor like it owed him money while trying to think of the perfect way to word his thoughts.

“It’s just…” He said, trying to produce more crocodile tears, “I think I’m going to die.”

David’s shoulders tensed at the statement.

“What do you mea-” Max cut him off before he could continue.

“The new kid… he threatened me. But like not in the way I do like _“Suck a dick David”_ or _“They’ll never find your body if you try that shit Nikki”_. It was like… a real threat.” Max paused and sniffled again but this time, it wasn’t for the act.

_‘Jesus christ I really shouldn’t have gone out when it was raining and cold. Fuck.’_ He started regretting some recent events.

“What did he say to you exactly?” The camp counselor questioned, putting a hand on the boy’s shoulder.

Max thought back to the events of yesterday. “Well,” he started, “Preston said that people should watch their tents because Mac might stab them in their sleep since his name is Macbeth like that guy from the Shakespeare play or something I didn’t really pay attention in English class. It was just a dumb reference but then he said some creepy shit to me and ended it with ‘Preston was right you know.’” Max fiddled with the blue cuffs of his sleeves. “And he looks like one of those Xemüg cultists like Daniel was. And remember what Daniel did? He... tried to take your place.” 

David stared at the cedar wood floors of the cabin for a second, collecting his thoughts, before he heard another sniffle come from the small boy. The counselors eyes shot open in realisation. 

_‘Oh my gosh he was walking in the storm! He’s gonna get sick!’_

He grabbed Max’s tiny hand and felt it.

“David what the fu-”

“Max you’re freezing!” The camp counselor said a little too loudly which earned a ‘sh’ from Gwen whom he forgot was there. He whispered a nervous ‘sorry’ and turned back to the sniffling boy in front of him. “I’ll be right back.” David stood up and silently made his way to his closet. Max sat and watched him scavenge through a bunch of shirts and pants and mumble things like ‘that wont fit’ or ‘he definitely wouldn’t wear this’.

Approximately 48 seconds later, Max counted, the counselor threw a bundle of clothes on the bed. The camper picked up the first item. It was a muted green shirt, similar to the one David was currently wearing, with a darkened silhouette of a pine tree in the corner. It looked about 8 sizes two big. He picked up the pants next which were oversized sweats that were definitely too long. The camp counselor then signaled towards the bathroom so Max picked up the clump of apparel and went to try it on.

Minutes passed of his waterlogged clothes getting stuck on his skin while trying to take them off and stumbling around trying to remove his jeans but, eventually, he was wearing a dry outfit. He emerged from the washroom and plopped the rained-on clothes in the hamper before hearing an excited squeal. He turned to look at David who looked like he just saw a golden retriever puppy roll over.

“Uh what’s that face about?” Max questioned, raising his eyebrows.

David dramatically wiped a single tear from his eye. “You just look so tiny and adorable right now.” He said with glee. The small boy in front of him turned beet red but he couldn’t tell if it was because he was embarrassed or enraged.

“I am **_not_** adorable!” He screeched. “I’m _Max!_ The one man hellraiser! The stoic rebel! I hate _everyone_ and _everyone_ hates me!”

A mumbled ‘shutthefuckup’ was heard from Gwen whom they, again, forgot was in the room.

David apologized, again, and gave the camper a humoured smirk.

“Well, I think the shirt that goes down to your knees says otherwise.”

Max irately debated to the camp counselor about how he wasn’t ‘ _cute’_ and about how he needed to _‘shut the fuck up’_. David cut him off half way and retorted with “Weren’t you the one who showed up at my door at 2 am saying that you were scared?” That comment made Max remember the plan of being ‘innocent’ to get Mac shunned out of Camp Campbell so he surrendered the debate and sat back down on the bed.

“Ok kiddo, i’ll join you in a second. I'm just gonna check my emails above my head for a second.” Max heard the camp counselor’s phone camera click and saw himself in the reflection with the baggy camp shirt and oversized sweatpants that were rolled up to fit. 

_‘Of course David needed this for blackmail or something.’_

“Hm. No new messages.”

“Show that picture to anyone camp man and I'll Ted Bundy you.” The camper said, crossing his arms. David just laughed in response.

“Sure thing Max.”

The red head sat back down next to the tiny boy and gave him a soft smile.

“So…” he started, “You actually think Mac is a ploy from Daniel?” Max nodded in response.

“Well yeah. I mean me and you are the two people that fucker wants dead right? Remember the whole bunker event? He wanted you and I specifically.” David pondered what Max was suggesting for a second.

“I mean… it makes sense… but what if he’s just someone who looks like you with a go-get-em attitude?” 

The camper sighed in hyperbolic fashion and jumped off the bed. “You know what? I’d rather be stabbed in my sleep then have to listen to you try to give a cultist the benefit of the doubt.” Max started walking towards the door. “‘Night camp man.”

“Wait,” David started without thinking, “Don’t you want to sleep here?”

The boy stopped walking.

“What?”

The counselor realised what he said sounded stupid considering it was Max and not any of the other campers who usually came to him for that but he tried his luck anyway.

“Usually if one of you kids come to the cabin at night I let you sleep in my bed while I sleep on the couch. It might make you feel a bit safer.” 

Max thought about it for a second. 

_‘I only came here to prove that Mac was a bad person not to screw with David’s comfort but that freakshow cultist fuck can’t get to me in here to I’d be safe right? Wait no, no, no I’m not actually scared am I? Fuck no I ain’t scared of no wanna be Jim Jones! But sleeping here would make my case of being ‘innocent’ and David would do something about Mac. I mean he only really listens to me if I change my persona in a drastic way and the normal Max wouldn’t take up this offer so should I-’_

His thoughts were cut off by David breaking the silence.

“So what do you say?”

Max looked at the floor and back to the counselor.

“Yeah. Fuck it.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> please leave ideas critiques in the comments :)


	3. If They See You When You're Sleeping, Make Them Leave It

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Max sick and has to stay away from activities for the day.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> AHHHH SORRY THIS TOOK SO LONG!! School just started again and im still getting used to the workload since i was homeschooled for a term but im trying my best!! Hope you enjoy this chapter and please leave critiques in the comments. Thank you!!

Max woke up from the best sleep he’d had since he first came to Camp Campbell by a familiar voice. He recognised it as David but it was different. He couldn’t tell if it was different since he just woke up or if his voice had actually changed. It was softer than the usual annoyingly loud chipper tone that the counselor previously had which concerned Max since usually when his attitude changed there was something horribly wrong. When he opened his eyes, he saw David smiling softly in front of him.

“Oh good, you’re awake!” He said, still trying to be quiet.

Max groaned and sat up slowly, rubbing his eyes, and looked out the window.

_ ‘Wait...’  _ he thought,  _ ‘It doesn’t look like 7 am…’ _

The sun was already high in the sky, shining down on the Camp Campbell flag pole, and the rest of the campers were out with Gwen doing what seemed to be archery.

“David, what time is it?” Max asked, flopping back down onto the bed theatrically after realizing his own voice was more nasally than usual. David hesitated for a second.

“Umm…” he started, “11 am?” The sleepy boy gazed at the camp counselor curiously.

“You never let me sleep in… what’s different today?” He watched David slump over, trying to pick the right words to not set Max off into a swearing rage like he did last night.

“Well…” the counselor thought a while longer before giving a response. “You’re sick Max. Like not a lot but enough for you not to do activities today. Don’t be mad ok?” David’s words were doused in pity and sorrow but the camper’s face turned from curiosity to excitement faster than Cameron Campbell when seeing 10$ on the floor. 

“Seriously? No Activities?” Max looked ill. With eye bags you could shop with and his normally warm-toned skin dulled, morphing to a muddy grey, he still seemed ecstatic about not having to do anything. “Thanks, David. You’re the best” The boy turned on his side and passed out again almost instantly.

The counselor sighed with a small smile and pulled the duvet back over the boy. Something that he knew about Max was his nightowl tendencies which clashed with his love of sleep. In the camper’s own words, “It’s like being in the void for 8 hours.” David thought back to his exact wording. “It’s the one time I don’t have to deal with everyone’s fucking bullshit problems.”

_ ‘Language.’ _

Max stayed up late regardless for unknown reasons. The camp counselor always thought it was to brag that he stayed up until 2 am or something but he leaned more towards the fact that he’s probably just a restless sleeper. Albeit, David had only found this out last night due to the boy tossing and turning all night, not seeming to get comfortable.

_ ‘Poor kid just wants to sleep. Probably explains why he’s always so grumpy.’ _

The Camp Campbell morning time crunch was always a struggle for Max since he was used to waking up at 11 am and going to homeschool after a long night and David understood how onerous it was to switch sleeping cycles smoothly.

_ ‘Explains the circles under Max’s eyes.’  _ He thought with a small frown.

“DAVID!” Gwen screeched while sprinting frantically into the room, “THE FUCKING SPACE KIDS ON  _ FIRE _ !” 

The camp counselor’s expression was quickly painted with panic as they both ran back out of the cabin. 

-

Max awoke in his own bed at what seemed to be 8 pm since he could hear the campfire song ‘Gwen is not your mother so stop telling her to do your dishes’ blasting throughout the forest. He sat up, quickly realizing he was back in his own tent. When coming back to consciousness, he noticed a lopsided post-it-note stuck on his blanket. The words read, “Hey Max! Just switched you back to your own bed so you would be in a more familiar environment. Get well soon! -Your Favourite Camp Counselor!” Next to that was a messily drawn doodle David drew of himself with a thumbs-up accompanied by his iconic smile. He even took the time to colour the doodle’s hair with a red pen.

_ ‘Pttf what a nerd.’ _ He thought to himself while contradicting his thoughts with a soft smirk.

Max plopped back down into his cot and stared at the tent ceiling before drifting back off to sleep once more. He knew he shouldn’t be sleeping this much but being sick made every movement exhausting.

-

The night was peaceful. The sky was painted with ink and splatters of stars decorated the void of space like dusted freckles while the fireflies drifted lazily through the air. Faintly, an ensemble of crickets sang their music through the long grass which was accompanied by sparse rainfall. The dewy petrichor lingered in the air from last night's storm along with the delicate aroma of campfire smoke wafting through the camper’s tents. Peaceful was the best word he could describe Camp Campbell after hours but pleasant would also fit nicely with the scene.

“Macbeth doth murder sleep.”

His breath stopped.

Peaceful was no longer. The word slipped through Max’s grasps and was quickly replaced by confused hysteria. He didn’t want to open his eyes. He tried to reach for peace again but couldn’t find the word through the floating shapes and flashing lights of the abyss of his own closed eyes.

“Macbeth doth murder sleep.”

Max knew what was about to happen but he couldn’t bring himself to open his eyes.

_ ‘Coward. Coward. You’re a coward.’  _ The camper screamed in his head.

_ ‘Coward.’ _

“Macbeth doth murder sleep.”

Something cold and sharp dragged lightly across his neck. It wasn’t enough to cut but it was enough to make Max’s eyes shoot open instantly.

His stare met the dilated, empty eyes which belonged to Mac who was holding a dagger above the camper’s neck. The cultist's humourless grin creeped wider.

Once the doppelganger noticed the boy was awake, he recoiled and hid the weapon in his hoodie pocket.

Max sat up hastily and backed himself into the corner of his tent.

“What the fresh fuck do you think you’re doing.” The camper said with wide eyes. Mac’s face was devoid of real expression and didn’t even seem sentient. 

_ ‘Unsettling.’ _ He thought.

“Oh Max you’re awake.” The copy said with his smile not faltering. “I was just going to ask you a question.”

The frightened boy struggled for words for a moment. “What.” He started, “Were you going to ask me with that knife against my neck?”

Mac’s head tilted to the side. “What do you mean? Is your ailment making you hallucinate?”

Max swung his legs over the side of the bed.

_ ‘Coward. Face your problems yourself. You don’t need David to fix this. You’re a coward.’  _

But the camper had already started walking towards the tent exit subconsciously, ignoring his thoughts.

“Where are you going, _ Max?”  _ The other boy questioned.

Max went through a couple of excuses in his head.

“Um,” He thought a while longer. “I’m just… going to the counselor’s cabin because I… feel… nauseous. Yeah, that’s it. ‘Night weirdo.” Then, he promptly scurried out of the tent.

He ran through the light rain, this time without a jacket, and knocked rapidly on the counselor's cabin door. 

David yanked it open lazily soon after. “Max?” He mumbled sleepily, “What’re you doing here…?”

The camper’s jaded eyes met the counselor's exhausted gaze and sighed.

“Preston was right.”


	4. And I Can't Even See if it's All There Anymore So…

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Max accidentally leaks personal information about himself.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'll put updates on my Tumblr @lexnbish for the comic!! also there's some personal stuff at the endnotes about this fic so read it if you want but yeah it's kinda like the reasoning behind this fic ig. enjoy chapt 4!

David stood in front of the small, trembling boy with confusion. 

“Wha-” Max cut him off.

“Just let me in you fucking idiot.” The camper pushed passed David and scurried into the cabin’s main room.

He plopped himself down on the free bed and sighed heavily, wiping the dewdrops of rain off his arms while the counselor slumped sleepily towards his bed, sat down and rubbed his eyes lazily.

“Max, what is happening to you? This is the most you’ve come to the counselors' cabin well… ever!”

The boy didn’t really know how to respond. Of course, he knew the answer but, he had to think strategically about it.

‘ _ Ok, so I could tell him about Mac… but he wouldn’t believe me. I mean he didn’t believe me last night. As gullible as David is, I don’t think he’d actually think that ‘sweet little Macbeth’ would commit homicide since well… he’s David. So I might as well just go with what I told that cultist fuck right? The plan is risky but it should work if I just come to the counselors' cabin every night, so I don’t get stabbed, and then just manipulate David by saying the little thing the kid does to make him think badly of Daniel’s little ploy. I mean… David’s a dumbass so that’ll fucking work.’ _

Max slumped down. “I feel nauseous?” That seemed to do the trick since David finally looked awake after hearing that.

“Oh!” The counselor said a bit too loudly causing Gwen to shut him up tiredly. He cringed at the scolding and apologized softly with an awkward smile. David turned back to the camper. “I’ll go get a bucket.” Max nodded casually and flopped his head onto one of the pillows while unwanted thoughts plagued his mind. 

_ ‘I joke about dying all the time… why do I care now? Have I actually changed that much since the start of summer? Why am I overthinking this whole operation? What the fuck is happening to me?’ _

A bucket hit him in the side and interrupted his spiraling thoughts.

“There you go,” David said and sat next to Max. “So… I doubt that’s the only reason you came here. Usually, if you were sick you’d just throw up in the outhouse like you did after Harrison did that one trick on you a month ago.”

The boy was speechless. 

_ ‘SHIT,’ _ he thought,  _ ‘THE DUMBASS ISN’T AS DUMB AS I THOUGHT!’ _

“I just-” David cut him off again.

“I know whatever you’re about to say is going to be completely off-topic to distract me from the question. You have patterns, Max.”

The camper stared at his feet in shock before shortly shaking away any emotion but anger. His brows furrowed to accompany his facial expression which resembled a pissed off baby seal.

“What the _fuck_ do mean by ‘ _patterns’_ **CAMP MAN**?” David recoiled at the sudden aggression while Max jumped off the bed and started pacing menacingly across the cabin floor. “I don’t have fucking patterns. I am **_Max._** I’m an _unpredictable_ scheming **_asshole_**! That’s why _everyone_ hates me!” Gwen shoved a pillow over her head to drown out the commotion while mumbling a slurred ‘imtrynasleeppleaseshutthefuckup’. Both boys winced at the co-counselor’s reprimand and continued the debate quietly.

“Look kiddo,” David started with a small smile, “When I confront you about something you always either distract me from the topic or lash out. Right now, you did both.” 

This just made him madder. His pacing stopped before he turned to the redhead and pointed an accusatory finger in his direction. “Fuck  _ off, _ David.  **Stop** acting like you know me. You DON’T. Nobody does. Not you. Not Nikki. Not Neil. Not Gwen. Not my stupid fucking foster parents.” The words he spoke dripped with malice and aggression.

The camp counselor shook his shock away and sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose. “Max, I’ve been working with kids for 6 years. I notice things.”

The small boy was seething with an emotion that David couldn’t put an exact word to. Sullen could work, maybe bitter. It was almost self-loathing rage. A certain anger which Max constantly attacked others with.

_ ‘Patterns.’  _ He thought.

Heavy, exasperated breathing suffocated the silence of the counselor's cabin, clashing with the calming choir of crickets shouting their songs at the door. Screams of thoughts surrounded the boy’s head. Screams of things he couldn’t say out loud without his knees buckling from the hostile sadness infecting his mind. It was an emotion a 10-year old shouldn’t experience. An emotion of crushing stress and a body filled with swirling acrimony and resentment a child wouldn’t know how to express. His tongue was caustic. Spitting words that David hoped the boy didn’t understand although he shouted them uncontrollably regardless.

“I’M  _ NOT LIKE _ OTHER KIDS DUMBASS! I’VE BEEN THROUGH MORE SHIT THAN MOST PEOPLE AT THIS GOD-FORSAKEN CAMP AND YOU DON’T  _ EVEN _ KNOW FUCKING  _ HALF _ OF IT!” Max took a jagged breath and continued. “YOU’RE NOT MY FUCKING DAD ASSHOLE SO STOP ACTING LIKE YOU ARE. I WISH YOU DIED INSTEAD OF MY FUCKING  _ PARENTS _ !”

The small boy stopped himself. 

He met David’s shaken gaze hesitantly, feeling his heart drop faster than an airplane with no wings. 

_ ‘No,’ _ He thought,  _ ‘No, no, no, no. Fuck.’ _

Dread. That’s an emotion he could describe.

“David I-”

He felt sick. Nauseous.

_ ‘FUCK.’ _

The camper ran towards the bucket, hugging it tightly to his chest and felt his throat burn with bile. It felt like lava scorching his esophagus with its sinful bitterness and acrid venom. 

That caused David to shoot up immediately.

“Max!” He shouted which caused Gwen to jump out of her bed and rush to the vomiting boy’s side. After about a minute, his gagging reduced to agonising dry-heaving. Burning tears welled in his eyes but didn’t fall as much as he wanted them to since he could barely see through his blurred vision. He suddenly noticed that he couldn’t hear anything. Just ringing. 

_ ‘Wow looks like they upgraded my tinnitus. Fun.’  _ He thought to himself.

“Hey,” David’s voice broke through the white-noise. “It’s ok. I know you didn’t mean it.” Max flopped backwards into the counselor’s arms, too weak to hold himself upright.

Tired- no -  _ exhausted _ . That’s all he could feel. 

… 

He felt like shit. Dirty, sick, weak.

“Fuck…”

Whatever he was laying on jolted at his comment.

_ ‘Wait… this isn’t a bed.’ _

Max opened his eyes hesitantly. A muted green shirt was in view along with carmine red plaid pyjama pants and a scent that reminded the boy heavily of cinnamon toast crunch cereal.

“Oh good, you’re awake!”

_ David. _

The camper was laying on his side, curled up against the counselor’s chest like a small cat so he flipped himself around leisurely to meet the man’s gaze.

“David?” Max spoke dazed and confused. “What happened-” The events flooded back into his mind like a tsunami. “Fuck never mind I remember.”

The redhead frowned and pat the black curls atop the boy’s head. “Look,” He started, “You don’t have to tell me what you meant by what you said. In fact, you could never tell me and I’d be fine as long as you’re comfortable. But Max,” The counselor locked eyes with the sleep-deprived camper sitting on his torso. “If you want to talk, I’m always listening.”

Max looked away for a second but then locked eyes with David again.

“I think...” He paused for a second, but then gave his camp counselor a tired, small smile 

“I think I want to talk.” 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I'm writing this fic basically for self-healing. I'm gonna be projecting some heavy shit that's happened to me through Max (except my parents aren't dead so it's not gonna be exact but like certain things) and the main reason I'm having Max open up to David is because I just started counseling at school today and I felt so much better by doing that so I feel like writing some of my experiences through Max would help even more too. So yeah that's next chapter and I just thought I should disclose that lol.


	5. You're Too Mean, I Don't Like You, Fuck You Anyway

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Max opens up to David about his family life.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The new character is based off my sister lol. And thanks for all the support with this fic!! I love writing it and I'm glad ya'll love reading it :,)) <3

Max rolled off of David’s chest and flopped down onto his back on the left side of the bed. The soft light from fairy lights that hung above didn’t help his exhaustion. His eyes felt heavy.

“Ok just as a disclaimer,” The camper started, trying to shake off his fatigue, “I’m tired as fuck so I’m prolly gonna ramble, maybe fuckin’ overshare or whatever and ya know… I might pass out because holy shit.” David nodded slowly.

“That’s fine Max.” He said with a soft smile, “If you’re tired just go to slee-”

“Nope.” The small boy cut off his camp counselor, “This is the first time I wanted to talk about this shit in years so I’m fucking doing it.” A comfortable silence set in the room and, shortly after, soft, quiet snoring was heard.

“Max?”

The kid jolted awake.

“SORRY, sorry I told you that’d happen” He slurred sleepily. The small boy sighed and continued. “So long story short. Parents died in a car crash. Got put in the system ‘n shit. First foster family I went to died in a fire. I survived somehow. Then, I went from home to home until I got to the one I’m in now. They’re assholes.”

David’s brain buffered for a second. “Oh…”

“Yeah, I know right. They’re these dickheads called the ‘Williamson Family’” Max crumpled into a small, little ball on the bed. “They only keep me around for the fucking fostering allowance.” His voice cracked. “But, I mean, it makes sense. Like they needed the money and I get a shitty storage room to sleep in so it’s a win-win.”

“Wait…” The camp counselor started, “They kept you in a storage room?”

The boy nodded casually. “I’d say more of a large cupboard but yeah essentially.”

“Max that’s… that’s horrible.” David gawked with a sullen expression creeping onto his face. 

“It’s whatever I guess.” He said, folding his arms and turning on his side. “I got used to it. I mean… I’ve lived there for like 5 years so I had to adapt at some point.”

The small camper then tensed up. “And um…” He paused and caved in on himself more. “Sometimes they’d hit me.”

David’s eyes shot open. “They did what?”

“Hit me.” He repeated. “Sometimes too hard. They were heavy drinkers so I guess it wasn’t their fault. They drank because they were stressed and I made that worse with stupid, snarky comments.” Max’s words dripped with malice. He turned once more, this time onto his front, and mumbled something into his pillow.

“What was that last part?” The counselor inquired.

He mumbled again into his pillow.

“Wh-”

Max picked his head up and looked David in the eye. “I said that it’s my fault.” His erratic breathing was repressed in his throat but it was still heard quietly. 

“Max, you and I both know that isn’t true.” The counselor reasoned sympathetically.

He was too tired to argue and sighed defeatedly. “Ok, whatever.”

David slumped down further into the duvet, feeling exhaustion slip into his mind. “Did the Williamsons have any other foster kids?”

Max tensed further and. looked away from his curious counselor. “...Yes.” He spoke hesitantly, “I guess I had a foster sister for a couple of years.”

“Oh, that’s nice!” The redhead perked up slightly at the thought of something positive coming out of the experience. “What was she like?”

The small boy flipped around onto his back. “She was cool.” He started with a soft smile. “Her name was Delilah. She had short honey blonde-ish hair, brown eyes, and a stupid amount of freckles. Honestly…” he paused for a second, “She was the closest thing I had to a sibling... ever really.” 

David frowned. “Was?”

Max’s smile disappeared faster than Ered’s report cards. “She ran away a year ago.” He mumbled, playing with the hem of the sheets to distract himself. “I was going to go with her too but… the stupid fucking Williamsons grabbed me before I could run out the door. She was the bravest motherfucker I knew… kinda reminds me of Nikki to be honest.” He paused again, letting a morose expression paint his face. “She took a lot of beatings for me.” 

The counselor thought about what to say for a moment. “How old was she when she left?”

“15.” He said with an expression David couldn’t even explain. “I hope she’s ok.”

Another silence settled into the room. An uncomfortable silence to be specific.

_ ‘Here goes nothing.’ _ The redhead thought before sitting up to face the camper.

“I could help you find her… if you want me to.” 

Max shot up from where he was laying and stared bewilderedly at David with unblinking jade eyes.

“Wait, really?” 

The camp counselor nodded in response.

“Of course, kiddo.”

The small boy was filled with indescribable joy - pure happiness maybe - for the first time in months.

“David, you’re fucking amazing holy shit” He said before flopping back down onto his back, smiling like an idiot. “By the way,” Max started again, “Do you have my hoodie? I had a picture in the pocket and I don’t really want to lose it.” 

David paused.

“Uhh… OH!  _ That _ picture!” He exclaimed while suddenly jumping out of the bed, scampering towards one of his desk drawers and scavenging through the late power bills and Gwen’s job rejection letters. The camper heard murmurs of  _ ‘It’s around here somewhere’ _ and  _ ‘where did I put it’ _ before hearing a triumphant gasp of excitement. “There it is!” David snatched the object out of the sea of papers and examined it closely. “This is you and Delilah, right?” The counselor said, turning the image towards Max who nodded in response.

“Yep, I’ve kept that picture in my pocket ever since she left.” A melancholic smile of nostalgia appeared on his face. “I guess it’s so I’d still have her bravery or whatever when I need it the most. It’s like she’s still standing up for me.” He turned red for a second and looked away from the camp counselor’s gaze. “Christ I know It’s fucking dumb. I think the sleep deprivation is oversharing now.” David chuckled and walked over to Max, placing the photo in the boy’s hand.

“I don’t think it’s dumb, Max.” He said with a warm smirk. The camper smiled and averted his eyes to the picture in his hands. 

It was creased with fold lines in a cross with most of the image smudged around the edges like a radial blur. Cloudy skies paint the top half of the photo, creating the dead atmosphere Max knew all too well. The small backyard was decorated with a wilting lettuce patch, muddy, brown grass, and weeds plaguing the lawn accompanied by a white picket fence with peeling paint. In the foreground stood two kids. One of which was a girl who seemed to be about 13-years old. She had short, honey-blonde hair, that was like a tumbleweed that fell to her jaw, and freckles that covered every inch of her constantly sun-burnt skin. Dark eyebrows arched against her forehead. Wide-legged, denim jeans came to her ankles along with a baggy blue and white striped shirt from the thrift store that had a rip in the sleeve. She also had on umber hiking boots over mid-calf white socks that were decorated with stars. In her hand was a half-flat soccer ball.

Beside her was a short boy. He had warm-toned gingerbread skin that had lightly dusted freckles over his nose and a mop of charcoal hair that fluffed atop his head. The kid sported a maroon jumper with small wording embroidered at the top left, which was illegible due to the image quality, and black gym shorts that fell loosely past his knees.

The girl had her arm slung around the other in a side hug in what seemed to be mid-autumn.

A wave of nostalgia crashed into Max as he scanned the photo.

_ ‘I’ll find you one day.’  _ The camper thought to himself before flopping back down onto David’s bed and placing the picture carefully on the nightstand.  _ ‘But first, I need to stay alive long enough to do so’ _

“Anyways,” The counselor started, “Why did you come to the cabin in the first place again?”

Max turned to his side and let his eyes close, too tired to hold back any information. “Mac tried to stab me in my sleep.” He said nonchalantly. 

“ **WHAT!** ”

“‘Night dumbass.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Delilah will be brought up later after camp n stuff and I think it'll be a good dadvid opportunity for later :)


	6. You Make Me Wanna Scream At The Top of My Lungs

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Nightmares.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> sorry this was a bit later than usual lol. I had a LOT of work to do so heres chapt 6!! It might be a tad rushed and not as detailed bc holy shit im too tired to edit and i really just want to upload this now. enjoy!!

_ Blood. There was so much blood. David didn’t know who’s it was, where it came from, or why it was there but those questions dissolved in his head after hearing a familiar voice he knew all too well. _

_ “Why, hello there, David.” The counselor turned around to face the disembodied voice but was just welcomed with a black abyss. _

_ “Daniel?” _

_ A malicious laugh echoed throughout the void. It was a laugh vacant of warmth. A laugh that rips out and strangles every remaining slither of happiness in you.  _

_ “Why, yes, David! Who else would it be?” _

_ The camp counselor wandered the rhetorical questions. _

_ “I mean it could be Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson, Vin Diesel, My dad-” The cultist cut him off. _

_ “Okay I get it.” _

_ David looked around frantically to see anyone or anything but all he was welcomed with was a floor spilt with blood and darkness. _

_ “Daniel,” The redhead started worriedly, “Whose blood is this?” _

_ More maniacal laughter erupted and echoed through the abyss like the cultist just heard the funniest joke ever.  _

_ “Just look behind you, Davey.” _

_ David turned around hesitantly and gasped in horror. A blue bundle sat on the floor. Small, unmoving. It was a boy. A boy with a mop of black hair, cinnamon skin drained of colour and jade eyes that were open and lifeless. _

_ Lifeless. _

_ Dead. _

_ “No.” David muttered in confused hysteria. “No, no, no, no, no, no, no, Max no.” He fell to his knees and immediately checked the boy’s pulse. None. His vision was blurred by tears but he ignored it since he was too distracted by the sound of his own heartbeat pulsing in his ears.  _

_ It was Max’s eyes that pushed him over the edge. The boy’s usual emerald irises were dulled to a grey sage and David didn’t want to look at them but he couldn’t stop. All he could see was his eyes. _

_ “Max… you’re okay. You’re fine. You’re okay.” The counselor brushed the bloodied camper’s hair aside and chanted words of denial, refusing the truth. “You’re fine.” _

_ “It was your fault you know.” He jaggedly twisted his head to face the cultist. _

_ “What the fuck is that suppose to mean?” David rarely swore but he thought this was an appropriate time. Acrimony bubbled in his throat, suffocating him, making his already erratic breathing more strained like a crippled animal. _

_ “You didn’t listen to him about Mac. And now look at what’s happened.” Daniel gestured towards the limp, lifeless boy on the floor and David turned himself away from the cultist. He jolted backwards at the view in front of him. _

_ “Mac?” _

_ The camper stared with dilated, pale eyes with a default, emotionless smile. _

_ “Hello, David!” Mac said while sitting with his legs crossed behind Max, lightly scraping the neck of the lifeless boy in front of him with a crooked dagger. _

_ Tears fell down the camp counselors cheeks as a look of shock took over the anger. Then, misery. “It’s my fault.” He spoke shakily. “Preston was right…” _

_ “It’s your fault.” David spun around frantically at the crowd of voices shouting at him. It was the campers. Nikki and Neil came into sight first with empty smiles and then, the rest of the kids sluggishly followed. _

_ “It’s your fault.” _

David shot up, clutching the sheets like his life depended on it and gasped for air. His mind was swirling with too many emotions for any human to comprehend. A mix of seething rage, unfathomable sadness, confusion and something else he couldn’t describe. Protectiveness? Guilt? He didn’t know for sure.

_ ‘Max.’  _

David swiftly looked to his right and saw a small, sleeping bundle on the bed, breathing steadily. A sigh of relief escaped his mouth before jumping onto the hardwood floor and going around to the other side of the bed where Max lay. He sat down on the side and glanced at the sleeping boy. His eyes were closed and for once in his life he looked at peace and it brought a smile to David’s face. 

“What the fuck are you doing? It’s 4 in the morning dipshit.” Someone mumbled across the room. The camp counselor’s head jolted towards the voice and was met with a sleep-deprived, disheveled Gwen glaring at him from her pillow with a pink eye mask sitting lopsided on her forehead which read ‘FUCK OFF’. Her auburn hair curled past her shoulders which was interesting to see since David was used to his co-counselor’s hair in a high ponytail. He shook the thought and took a deep breath. 

https://lexnbish.tumblr.com/post/626149495573544960/chapter-6-is-out-ignore-the-arms-anatomy

“Yeah I know it’s late… I just had a nightmare. Like y’know those ones that are so bad that they wake you up?” Gwen nodded in response. “Yeah one of those.”

The co-counselor flopped down back onto her bed and muttered tiredly, “Wanna talk about it? It’s a Saturday so the kid’s get to sleep in and so do we remember.”

David shrugged. “Sure. Thanks Gwen.”

The counselor stood up and sat down on his roommate’s bed with crossed legs.

“No problem, dumbass.”

-

He told her everything. From the blood, to Daniel, to Mac and Max’s lifeless eyes.

“You’re really caught on the eye thing aren’t you.” Gwen said with worry.

David averted his eyes to the cedarwood floor. “Yeah... I don’t know why but there was just something so disturbing about it. Like his eyes were just so… soulless? Vacant? I don’t really know how to describe it.”

“Look,” His co-counselor started, “I think what Max said could be true because I mean… even I believe it. That kid’s weird and he’s up to something so I think you just gotta keep an eye on Max.”

“Okay, Gwen.” He sighed, too tired to protest that a 10-year-old probably isn’t homicidal. “I think he’s pretty messed up by it too. Like he’s been to the cabin twice already! He  _ obviously _ doesn’t feel safe alone in his tent.” The redhead frowned and played with the fabric of his crimson plaid pajama pants.

“Well yeah no shit, David.” Gwen remarked bitterly while crossing her arms. “Mac tried to fucking  _ stab  _ him! I wouldn’t feel fucking safe either if I were him.”

Across the room was the sound of tossing and turning accompanied by a disheveled groan. “What the fuck is going on?” The two counselors’s turned their heads to meet Max whose bedhead resembled a tumbleweed which was dunked in ink. “You two are being loud as fuck.” A pair of jade eyes stared.  _ Alive _ jade eyes. A wave of relief flooded through David for that was all he wanted to see. He just needed to know the camper was 100% alive and now he did.

“We were just talking, Max don’t worry. Sorry for waking you up.” The camp counselor said, giving him a soft smile.

“I heard the whole thing jackass.” David’s face dropped. 

“Oh…”

“And you know what else?” The kid gave the redhead a half-assed sleep-deprived smile. “I know you’ll help me now.” 

“What do you mean?” 

“Y’know you’ll be like my weird personal bodyguard since you’re scared I’m going to die or whatever.” 

David’s eyes shot open. “Woah, woah, woah I’m not gonna like… attack a camper. That’ll  _ never _ happen.”

“Oi, Camp Man,” Max started, rubbing his heavy eyes. “I’m not asking you to commit fucking homicide. I just mean that if he tries that shit again, you’ll kick him from camp or something.” The boy shifted under the weight of the duvet. “Plus, if you don’t do something about that weird cultist fuck, you’ll probably be the reason for my death sooooo pick your favourite.” 

“Jesus Christ,” Gwen said, pinching the bridge of her nose. “Max you’re not gonna fucking die. But… we also can’t risk it. He held a dagger over your head while you were asleep right?”

The camper nodded in response, swallowing the anxiety bubbling in his throat down thickly.

“Well shit.” She pondered her options for a second. “I mean… you could always sleep here in the cabin until this is sorted out.” Max’s eyes widened at the suggestion and then reset to his default, stoic expression.

“What’s the catch?”

Gwen sighed. “No catch. I just really don’t want to fill out the paperwork for another dead camper.”

“Fair enou- wait,  _ another? _ ” 

She laughed tiredly. “Just fuckin’ with you kid. Now get some goddamn sleep,  _ please.  _ We can discuss the details tomorrow.”

The small boy flopped down on the bed again. “Fine by me. Don’t wake me up before midday because you’ll be a fucking corpse otherwise.”

“Fair enough.” The camp counselors said, nearly unanimously. David stood up from Gwen’s bed and collapsed onto the couch which made Max feel a weird sense of guilt that flooded his senses.

_ ‘Fuck. You’re already fucking with their lives enough by even being in the counselor’s cabin and now David has to sleep on the couch. Jesus christ that should be me. Fuckkk when did I get so much goddamn empathy for people? That fucker really is rubbing off on me.’ _

The camper fiddled with the loose sheet in his hands, nervously threading the material through his fingers. “I can sleep on the couch if you want.” The redhead looked shocked for a second but then smiled warmly in the kid’s direction.

“It’s ok, Max.” He fluffed the throw pillow in his hands gently. “I don’t mind the couch. It’s actually comfy to be honest.”

Max knew he was lying. Sleeping on a bed of nails is better than that ragged old couch that looked as though it was made from a crocodile who suffered from measles. The leather was torn in every possible place, leaving the stuffed pale insides, shedding the Heineken green material all over the hardwood floor. No one would ever want to sleep on that but David is too stubborn and Max was too tired to argue.

The camper resorted to a half-yawned, “If you say so” and flopped onto the bed. “G’Night David. G’Night Gwen.”

“Goodnight kiddo. See you in the morning.”


	7. It Hurts

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Mac instates the first part of his plan.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sorry but this has to happen for plot development :,)

Max saw two silhouettes tower over him. That’s all he could comprehend. Frantically, he jumped up, making a noise similar to a startled animal while backing himself as far away from whoever was in front of him. His delirious eyes finally focused. There was a boy with truffle blonde curls that covered his large head who had powdered blue eyes that flashed with concern. He was dressed in a mustard jumper and brick-red jeans that looked a size too small. Next to him stood a perplexed girl. Unnaturally teal pigtails fell to her ribs, curling like springs with split ends that resembled a frayed rope. Crimson dungaree straps hooked around her shoulders and attached to her overalls which layered a canary-yellow Camp Cambell shirt.

_ ‘Nikki and Neil.’  _ He thought, sighing in relief.

“Jesus Christ, Max. It’s just us chill.” Neil said, worryingly crossing his arms.

“Yeah, yeah I know it’s been a rough couple of days.” He mumbled sleepily while pinching the bridge of his nose to rid himself of the massive headache that was starting to form in his head. The boy cringed at his own sickly, nasally voice.

“Speaking of the past couple of days,” Nikki started with hands on her hips, “Where were you!”

Max slumped back into David’s bed, too tired to keep himself up. “I’ve been pretty sick.” The camper stated matter-of-factly. “It’s been shit so the camp man’s letting me chill in the cabin for a bit.”

Neil raised an eyebrow inquisitively. “Ok, ok but,” He paused for effect. “Last time  _ I  _ checked, David doesn’t just  _ let _ campers sleep in his bed for more than a day unless they’re like  _ really  _ sick and you don't look too bad.”

“YEAH.” The teal-haired girl screamed loudly in agreement. “What’re you hiding Max?” His friends tried to look stern to get information out of him but ended up looking stupid in Max’s opinion.

“Jesus guys, take a fucking Xanax or something. There’s no shady shit goin on. I'm just sick.”

But, alas, there was shady shit going on. Max was contemplating left and right about whether he should tell his friends about his near-death experience. 

_ ‘Later.’  _ He thought to himself.  _ ‘I need to get more evidence first.’ _

The duo had matching looks of doubt painted on their faces.

“You don’t  _ look _ that sick though.” The Jewish boy said accusingly.

“Jesus fucking Christ, Neil. I have a massive fucking headache, I threw up last night and I’m pretty sure I got whatever the fuck Nerris had a week ago and the rain  _ definitely _ didn’t help.”

“Oh…” His friends said at the same time, suddenly feeling guilty for accusing him.

Nikki whispered ‘jinx’ which followed by Neil telling her to ‘shut up.’

“Anyway,” The ill camper started, “What’ve you guys been up to without me?”

The small girl’s face turned ecstatic, her abnormally rose eyes lighting up more than David’s stupid bonfire.

“We had a lot of fun, to be honest! We almost burnt down the woodscout’s camp, Harrison talked to Cthulu or something, we peer pressured Dolph into doing a backflip and he almost broke his neck… hmm what else.” Nikki pondered for a moment before gasping in delight. “OH YEAH! We also hung out with that new kid Mac.”

Max felt any reminisce of joy in his body being carried away in a hearse. 

_ ‘There’s no way.’ _ His thoughts spiraled. _ ‘Absolutely fucking not.’ _

“Wait, wait, wait, wait.” The camper started, waving his hands defensively. “You befriended my cultist clone!? What the fuck guys!”

“Doppelganger.” Neil corrected, “And I honestly don’t think he’s a cultist.”

A familiar bitterness wrapped its cold, clammy hands around Max’s throat, gripping tighter every second.

“Yeah! Mac’s  _ really _ fun to play with!” Nikki cut in, “He also listens to our problems and gives good advice and  _ wants _ to play Hunter vs Hunted with me and doesn’t call me stupid and disgusting when I eat bugs!” 

“He’s also a good lab assistant.” The Jewish boy added.

“Guys, come on. You seriously can’t be that oblivious.” Max crossed his arms in disbelief. “Mac’s just tryna butter you up so he can get to me. It’s super obvious.”

His friends' faces contorted to looks of offense.

“Did you just call us stupid?” The aura in the room became tenser.

“No, wait, I didn’t mean it like tha-”

Neil cut him off. “No, no, no Max I think you’re just a selfish jerk and you think the whole fucking world revolves around you. Can’t you just accept that me and Nikki can have other friends that aren’t you?” The words punched the sickened boy in the chest and he felt as though his heart was chained to a medicine ball that was hauling his organs downwards.

“I mean… of course you guys can have other friends but Mac is DEFINITELY after me! I thought you were  _ smart _ Neil so how the fuck can’t you  _ see _ this.”

“Nope,” Nikki said bitterly, “You’re just being selfish!”

They kept ranting but Max wasn’t listening. His blistering headache was spreading faster than the black plague along with grievously loud ringing in his ears.

_ ‘Shit.’ _

https://64.media.tumblr.com/48d29f9722bdd6ccf055d2b1ea25487a/2632e6507f69e797-45/s1280x1920/26ff942b0333b63ec9ad6f17c3757417db910fb4.png

He scrunched further in on himself and his vision seemed delayed, blurred with tears but the two in front of him barely noticed. Max wasn’t quite sure what they were saying but he definitely knew that they were angry. He assumed it was since he insinuated that they were stupid but it also seemed as though there was more. A lot of pent up emotions that were finally being let out like a tethered, rabid dog escaping its imprisoning collar. The camper understood that he was an asshole sometimes. Fuck… sometimes he even goes way too far but, this? This was unexpected.

The words 'micromanaging’ and ‘controlling’ came up a lot accompanied by ‘narcissistic’ and as much as he hated to admit it, the words hurt. Of course he wouldn’t say it out loud but it was painful to hear that two of his friends on the shortlist of people close to him were venting like this about him. The ringing became louder and the caustic headache worsened. 

_ ‘I’ll never be a good fucking person.’  _ He confessed to himself.  _ ‘The only way I’ve changed is for the worse.’ _

Max felt his whole world crumble around him. Ever since the time capsule activity 2 weeks ago, he’s been trying to be less of an asshole but, apparently, these efforts were in vain since he had never seen his friends this angry at him. Well, besides that time he called them ‘temporary friends’ but they weren’t even  _ this  _ pissed off then. 

__

He couldn’t take it anymore. There was an intense amount of pressure in his head and his mind felt like a watermelon being suffocated with rubber bands, ready to explode. So, he did the one that was guaranteed to work.

“SHUT THE FUCK UP!” Max shouted at the two.

The ringing stopped and so did the voices of his friends.

“Well,” Neil started after shaking away any initial shock from the outburst, “Doesn’t this just prove our point wonderfully.”

Max thought he was going to cry from frustration but he contained himself enough just to hold back any tears. “What the _ fuck _ is is that suppose to mean?” 

The truffle-blonde boy stared in disbelief in his friend’s oblivious comment. 

“Holy fuck Max!” He started pacing to and fro angrily. “How can’t you see that you’re being a massive dick!?” 

He didn’t really know how to respond. In fact, he wasn’t too sure what was going on. The two in front of him were too loud and all he wanted was silence.

“Please, fuck off guys. I can’t fucking handle this right now.” The ill boy flopped onto the bed and threw a pillow over his head to shield his ears from the noise. Regardless of the pillow, he could still hear a muffled “Fine. Let’s go, Nikki.” Neil walked out with the teal haired girl and slammed the door behind them.

“Can you fucking believe that guy?”

“No.” An eerily overjoyed voice came from behind the duo. A boy dressed in a creaseless, white hoodie stared with an unfaltering grin while leaning on the cabin outer wall nonchalantly. “So, you took my advice to stand up to him?”

Nikki nodded and talked before Neil could even get a word out. “Yeah, thanks, Mac! I kinda feel bad though not gonna lie. It really looked like he was going through something but I feel empowered!”

The Jewish boy shook his head. “Don’t feel bad about it Nik. He’s being an asshole and he knows it.”

Macbeth’s dilated, pale eyes shone mysteriously. “Yes. You don’t need Max anymore.” His smile crept wider. “You guys have me now.” 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> yoyoyyo now the title makes sense now right?


	8. But I Wont Fight You

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> David gives some advice.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> sorry there's no art for this chapter! ive been busy as fuck so this is all I could get out. anyway, i didn't really edit this chapter because I just wanted to get it out so sorry if it's bad :,)

David whistled happily and swung the cabin door open. Today was a good day for him. He had time to plan activities, he went for a nice peaceful forest walk and Gwen actually woke up 2 hours earlier just to help him set up the kayaks for Monday. On top of that, Dolph made him a fishtail braided bracelet, which read ‘#1 counselor’ on it but spelled horribly, to match the other one he got from last weeks ‘friendship bracelet making (not child labour) camp’. David had convinced himself that nothing could bring his mood down. 

That was until he saw Max.

The small lump under the duvet tensed at the noise of the door opening.

“Fuck off I don’t want a lecture.”

The counselor pondered what that was supposed to mean for a moment before shaking away his thoughts.

“Max?,” He started, slowly approaching the bed, “Are you feeling any better?”

The camper was lying on his side, curled into a ball, with his face in a pillow, wallowing in self-pity and sadness.

“I wanna fucking die,” he responded dryly. The sentence was muffled but David could still hear it regardless.

“Aw, why’s that, kiddo?” The redhead sat down on the bed next to the distressed boy.

Max rolled over slowly to meet the other’s concerned gaze and that’s when David noticed it. His eyes were puffy and red. 

_‘Oh darn something really bad must’ve happened.’_ He thought.

“I got in a really bad fight with Nikki and Neil.”

_‘Yeah, that explains it.’_

David shifted on the duvet to face the camper. “What happened exactly?” The kid pinched the bridge of his nose and groaned in annoyance.

“I don’t wanna fucking talk about it dipshit. You’re just gonna try to fix it and make everything worse like usual.”

The camp counselor slumped down like a self-pitying sloth. “Oh… I didn’t know I did that.”

Guilt softened Max’s features. “Nah, It’s all good. I’m just being an asshole like usual.”

“What do you mean ‘like usual’”?

The camper sluggishly pushed his scrawny body upwards to sit up straight. “Y’know exactly what I mean camp man.” He rubbed his eyes slowly. “Like if I wasn’t lethargic as fuck right now I’d be screaming at you to stay outta my business.”

David’s face morphed into a look of confusion. “I don’t think so.” 

“What?” Max was perplexed and stunned by his counselor’s response.

“You’ve actually been doing really well kiddo.” The redhead fiddled with the black bracelet made of thread on his wrist. “Like you made me this in ‘friendship bracelet making (not child labor) camp!’ You wouldn’t have done something this nice at the start of the summer!”

(ART!!!) Faltering News made it since I was busy :) <3

https://twitter.com/falteringnews/status/1305859245196312576?s=21

The camper raised an eyebrow. “The bracelet literally reads ‘below average counselor’ on it. How is that good?”

David wiped an invisible single tear away for dramatic effect. “It’s the thought that counts.”

A half-smile appeared on Max’s face for a second before a thought came into his head. “Wait…” The small boy whipped his head around to meet the camp counselor’s gaze. “Why did you even keep it? It’s literally just an insult on a piece of string.”

David’s face suddenly read something the kid could decipher. His smile was soft and nostalgic. But it wasn’t nostalgic of the past, but for the future. Sentimentality for a time that hasn’t happened yet. Anemoia, if you will. But, contradicting his warm and familiar smile were his eyes. They were soaked in melancholy, laced with saudade and Max wasn’t too sure why since, to the boy at least, it was just a piece of string which harboured an offensive phrase. The two emotions clashed on his face as though David was ambivalent about the bracelet. If only the camper could read his mind.

“I guess it’s sentimental.” The counselor stated, playing with the lettered beads to distract himself.

“Yeah, but why hell would you want something that reminds you of me? I’ve made like every summer for the past few years hell for you!”

“And that’s what made it interesting kiddo. Why would I want to forget all those memories? The good times, the bad times and all those times you’ve tied me to the flagpole, I _want_ to remember.”

Max felt like the weight of the world was taken off his shoulders. “Oh thank fucking _god!_ ”

Confusion overtook the counselor's face. “Wait, what?”

“I’ve felt guilty as fuck about everything I’ve done to you and like ruining your life and shit so, um, yeah that kinda gave me closure about that stuff.” The camper inhaled the fresh, forest air that wafted through the cabin window and smiled but, it then withered away again and a new weight came crashing back down onto him. “But like I still made Nikki and Neil mad. Like they’re fully pissed.”

David frowned slightly for a second before his same old determined, optimistic smile was scrawled onto his face again. “Just give them time. And once you’ve done that, you can apologize for all the things you’ve done to them because at the end of the day, you’re a better person Max. They just need to see it in action.”

The contagiousness of the counselor’s positivity spread to the small camper. “Fine, David. I’ll try.”

The redhead’s face lit up like the camp after St. Campbell’s Day. “Yay! I’m so proud of you Max!”

“Thanks, Dad.” The kid shot up and turned red, suddenly realising what he’d said. **“DAVID!** I SAID **DAVID!”**

He chuckled softly. “Okay, Max.” The counselor sat up, hopped onto the hardwood floor, and made his way to the door before stopping. “Oh yeah, you might want to take a shower. It’s been like 3 days.”

The camper rolled out of the bed at that and made his way towards the washroom without making eye contact. “Yeah, yeah whatever. I’ll see ya later.” He disappeared into the room with crimson still dusting his gingerbread skin.

David smirked warmly and walked out of the room. Once the door was closed, and after he made sure that no one else was around, he burst into excited squeals.

_‘I’M LIKE A FATHER FIGURE TO HIM!’_

And then, an impossible thought entered his head.

**Author's Note:**

> My art account is @alexa.n.art and @campofhorros on instagram and @lexnbish on tumblr if u wanna check that out!! Also there's gonna be a lot of 'Macbeth' references in this


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